Switchfoot returns to Christian rock roots with appearance at Rock the Desert

Nancy AdamsonMidland Reporter-Telegram

Published 7:00 pm, Saturday, August 2, 2008

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Switchfoot returns to Christian rock roots with appearance at Rock the Desert

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There may be some who are a little surprised Switchfoot is headlining the Saturday night show at the two-day Rock the Desert music festival. Though members of the group - especially frontman Jon Foreman - have always happily professed their spirituality, their musical message has been more secular. But for Christian music fans, the message has always been loud and clear. And those fans aren't the slightest bit puzzled the band will be appearing at RTD.

But for casual fans who only know the band from their hits "Meant to Live" and "Dare You To Move," the lack of an overt Christian message in their lyrics may bring pause for thought for their appearance. But bassist and backing vocalist Tim Foreman, Jon's brother, told the Reporter-Telegram in a recent phone interview from the band's studio in San Diego he definitely considers his musical career a ministry. And his career, because he's in the spotlight, includes the example he wants to set for fans, friends and family both in his onstage persona and his offstage life.

The band wanted their music to reach as large an audience as possible without compromising their beliefs in the same way other performers, including Evanescence, Paramore and U2, have.

So they've rarely refused a gig.

"We've played bars and clubs and Christian festivals. We're just honored to be playing anywhere," he said.

Switchfoot started their career in San Deigo in 1996. Brothers Jon and Tim Foreman had been into music for years before, though, starting a Led Zeppelin cover band when they were still in grade school. A few years later, they teamed up with drummer Chad Butler to become Chin Up, a name derived from a friend of Jon's

After adding a couple of members, the band changed their name to Switchfoot, which was a surfing term they liked because it implied change and movement. They were singed in 1997 to re;Think Records, but the company was sold to Christian label Sparrow before their fist album was released, meaning they would be strictly marketed to that market.

Early success still found them, though, when "Learning to Breathe" was certified gold and they were nominated for a best rock gospel album Grammy. In 2002, the band had four of their songs featured in the Mandy Moore film, "Walk to Remember," which also featured her version of their song, "Only Hope."

After fulfilling their contract with Sparrow and coming off the success of "Walk to Remember," Switchfoot signed with Sony Records in 2003 and released "A Beautiful Letdown," which contained their two biggest singles to date, "Meant to Live" and "Dare You to Move" and has been their biggest album, selling 2.6 million copies and giving the band the mainstream success it hoped for.

Their most recent album, "Oh, Gravity," was released in late 2006 and the band hopes to have a new album ready for release by early 2009. But the gap between releases hasn't kept the band out of the spotlight. In fact, acclaim and attention can come from the most unexpected places. Foreman was totally shocked the night David Cook performed "Dare You to Move" on "American Idol."

"I didn't realize what a big deal that show was. We were actually playing the Leno show that same night and that night my phone started blowing up," he said, laughing because he was thinking friends, family and "people I hadn't heard from in years" were calling and texting to congratulate them on their appearance, but they were calling about Idol, a show he wasn't too familiar with before that night.

Whether RTD attendees have seen Switchfoot live before or not, Foreman says they're in for a unique experience and maybe something truly unusual.

"We really don't try to do the same show twice," he said. "We feed off the audience's energy and that affects how the show goes. We perform mostly our own stuff but every now and then we'll thrown in an ironic cover. The other night, we did Beyonce's "Crazy in Love."

Rock the Desert runs Friday and Saturday at the RTD site located at 2000 N. Farm to Market 1788.

Friday's confirmed bands include - in order of appearance - needtobreathe, Paul Wright, Group 1 Crew, Family Force 5, Brock Gill and Newsboys.

The teen tent Friday will feature performances by Tyler Dodds and The Wedding.

Saturday's lineup, in order, includes The Wedding, Day of Fire, Jimmy Needham, Disciple, Hawk Nelson and Red. Switchfoot will close the festival and is expected to take the stage around 10 p.m.

Tickets for RTD are ,20 each and available at Midland and Odessa Chick Fil A restaurants, Family Christian Store, Midland Mardel, by phone through the Ticket Servant Call Center at (800) 731-4500 or online at http://www.ticketservant.com/shows/event5.asp